Mower not started in 7 years! Full tank of fuel and crankcase is full of oil. Tips?

Hey guys,

I just purchased an essentially brand new Lawnboy 22271 commercial mower with the Honda GSV 190 engine.
The prior owner bought the mower brand new approximately 7 years ago, and only used it for a few hours on his acreage before storing it.
The unit does not have a scratch on it, literally like a time capsule, so I believe him on the hours of usage.

The only issue is, he didn't drain the fuel when he put it away 7 years ago!
We drained the gas into his fire pit, and it had turned completely yellow like lemonade.
I tried turning the engine over with the spark plug disconnected to make sure it wasn't seized, and it is silky smooth, no binding.

My question is, what should I do to this mower before starting it?
The oil, air filter and spark plug look unused, as expected for a unit that only ran for a couple of hours since leaving the factory.

Can I just add fresh fuel, change the oil and go?
Do I need to clean the carb?
Any way to flush any fuel remaining in the lines or carb?

Re: Mower not started in 7 years! Full tank of fuel and crankcase is full of oil. Tip

I would change the oil, check the spark plug add fresh gas with a bit of SeaFoam in it and give it a start. See if/how it runs before doing anything else to it. Might lube the control cables if you feel any binding in them.
Tom

Re: Mower not started in 7 years! Full tank of fuel and crankcase is full of oil. Tip

You must go to church 7 days a week and fill the collection basket, NOBODY is that lucky, .. BUT, ..you should play the Lottery !! ..SUPER NICE looking machine, hoping it runs as good as it looks !! If you do have starting issues, I would first suspect the carb. and, would change any fuel lines that have hardened . ..

Re: Mower not started in 7 years! Full tank of fuel and crankcase is full of oil. Tip

As other have said, clean, flush, fill with fresh oil and gasoline.

Don't struggle to much if you can't get it started; after sitting that long, the carburetor is likely filled with goo. The good news is a genuine Honda replacement carb is usually < $20. If you'll get me the full serial number off the ENGINE block (It is in the form of GXXXX-1234567) I can get you the part number. You can then google it to find a dealer selling online.

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Robert@HondaSocial Media Consigliere
Caveat: I work for Honda, but the preceding is my opinion alone.

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